We've had a lot of new construction in Ithaca and Tompkins county in the past 10 years, and there is still little surplus.

You may be able to generate a surplus of cash if the ARV comes back higher than anticipated.

Sometimes, you are qouted a policy that is offered as a secondary line policy or surplus line policy, which means that company is approved to sell insurance in your state, but the policy is not approved and backed by the state.This may not be an issue in your state, it is in mine.  

As for the 60 days to file a claim.....you are confusing the 60 days a lien holder has to be able to file a claim for surplus proceeds, in a tax deed auction.

As long as you factor in that rents are low and do not change much, flips take longer to sell as there is usually a surplus of inventory and collecting rent can be a chore at times there is money to be made.

Some areas have a large waiting list of applicants and are currently giving out vouchers, and some areas/departments have eaten through their surplus right into a huge budget deficit (my area) and are no longer giving out vouchers.

You could either sue them for that entire amount (usually not worth it because most tenants don't have surplus cash) or keep their deposit as damages and not sue them (basically allowing them to settle).The deposit serves two purposes, to encourage them to keep the property in good shape and to not take off and abandon the agreement.

Also consider https://surplus-warehouse.com/kitchens.

Plus, I would end up with some surplus cash to complete a remodel at my primary residence.

She also worries that rent will go down with the market and we won't have any surplus on our expenses.